In the history of this country there have always been men of this caliber available when the situation has become darkest. However, owing to the politics of the military they are typically of lower rank when hostilities begin. It's only through the cauldron of combat that their true value becomes known.
Amen, brother!
Peacetime soldiers and the sort who rise to the top in peacetime are a different kettle of fish.
The men of iron are still there, but submerged in peacetime. They rise to the top as the peacetime "leaders" fall away. Hopefully this happens fast enough to avoid too many losses and casualties.
Bill Mauldin the "Stars & Stripes" cartoonist noted that many combat units in WWII in Italy had two sets of officers -- one for combat, the other for R&R in Naples. My dad (who was there) says Sgt. Bill was on the money.
(I'm not a soldier myself but I come from a family of civilian-soldiers all the way back to the French-and-Indian War, and I majored in military history.)